Vehicle buffer device



Feb. 26 1924.

G. A. Lyo'N VEHICLE BUFFER DEVICE 4original Filed oci. 5. 1921 form attaching strips l `desirable' to. have'the butler end somewhat reduced in width or rounded to decrease the Patented F eb. 26, 41924.

GEORGE ALBERT LYON, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

VEHICLE BUFFER DEVICE.

Original application led October 5, 1921, Serial No. 505,468.

Divided and this application medianas,

1923. Serial N0. 843,661.

To all whom. it Amay concern: Be it known that l, GEORGE' ALBERT LYON, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Philadelphia, county Vof Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have made a certain new and useful Invention Relatin hicle Buffer Devices, of which the ollowm is a specification taken'in connection wit i the accompanying drawin This application is a division of my application Serial No. 505,468, filed October 5,1921.

This invention relates. to buffer or bumper devices for automobiles or other vehicles in which plates of spring steel or other suitable metal are slit or cut so as to, form a series of vertically separa-tedA strips or members.

Some of which may be .used as the buffer front strips or members, and' adjustably or otherwise connected together, if desired, so as to lform a -double strength reenforced hutfer front throughout the central-part of the buer between the automobile frame members. Some of these integrally connected strips stamped or eut from such plates may be bent inward and rearward to or members and may given Aany suitable shape and construction so as to most conveniently and eifectively secure them tothe automobile frame. In some cases the attaching strips may be forced or spread apart edgewise from the connected buffer front strips; so that, if desired,` several inches ofI clearance can be secured in this manner, and it is usually weight and also to give increased resilience and a more pleasing appearance tothis part of the buffer. In some cases also several "ertically separated front strips may be cut orstamped lout of asingle plate of such spring steel material and preferably connccted to an intermediate rearwardly bent' 415` attaching member or strip which may be indirectly .or directly connected to the vehicle rame.

Inl the accompanying. drawings showing in a somewhat diagrammatic way various illustrative embodiments Fig. 1 is a perspective of buffer. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the corresponding spring steel blank showing the way in which the parts'maygbe fgormedor cut out.

of. the. inventionvlew of one form to Vewardly curved or andefour to seven inches Fig. 3 is a similar view showing another form of blank.

Fig. t is a perspective view of the corresponding buffer which may be made therefrom, and

Fig. 5 is a detail view showing amoditied construction. g

' In the form of buffer shown in Fig. l the front strips or impact receiving members, l, 2, maybe substantially horizontal or level, if desired, and are' preferably substantially straight throughout their overlapping portions between the Strip ends 7, 8; these oveilapping portions being adjustably or otherwise connected as b the clips or connecting devices 14. These fsifont strips may be bent backward somewhat outside of these overlapping portions, and forexample,

the strip'l ma have its outer portion 3 bent or curved black so as to merge into the reduced or tapered buffer end 4 which mafl' '.be rounded on its tip as indicated. The bu the point or line of separationft' so as toy give a' resilient support to theireenforced front strips, and also them in somewhat elevated position as iS desirable in many cases. The corresponding front strip 2 ma f have -a similarly rearent outer portion 3, comiuunicating with the reduced rounded end 12 and with the integral lower or vertically separated attaching member 13.

:This desirable form of resilient buffer may be conveniently and cheaply made from sheet metal blanks, such as shown in Fig. 2; and these blanks may be out in a suitable press or ot lerwise from the desired spring steel stock about a quarter to three-eighths `of an inch-thick more or less,

4wide or so atthe widest part. The blank where the greatest-` ceonomy of stock is desired may be punched or otherwise severed along the longitudinal cut or lines of severance 5-10 and simultaneously or otherwise cut transversely as at the longitudinally separated points 6 9. The blank is thus "severed into two parts, each of which has one long strip or member 1, 2 and a verticallv separated shorter strip or member 11, 13; tl ent parts being, of course,

attaching strips and preliminarily cut preferably to hold ie length of, these dieri i front strips of the nuifer. Then the separated f and slit blank sections may be bent, hardened and tempered and finished in any suitable way as by grinding processes before the l iinal nickle-plating, enamel or other surface finish is iven thereto. Of course, the main cutting, nding and shaping operations are more effectively done when the metal is hot andin some cases more or less of these shapprocesses may be performed at .the same heat at which the blank sections are finally hardened for 'tempering Fig-3 shows another illustrative style or type of blank which may have reduced or U rounded ends 16, 17 and be correspondingly sections-are formed, the blankima be six- 20 widerv where three or more vertically separated buffer sections are formed from the same strip of material. Where three strip or nine inches wide, a suitable widt spring steel 'rolled stock which referably has rounded edges being advisable ,for this purpose. Several longitudinal cuts or lines of severance 18-20 and 19-21,may be formed inthe blank `and a' series of transverseV cuts or lines of severance 26-27 and 30-31 may be made by any suitable stanipin or cutting device. In this casethe blan siderablyl longzr than the complete buii'er :I 80 .front since a r bending back the intermediateattaching strips or tongues 22--23 for instance4 and curving more or less the adjacent portions of the. other vertically separated strips, they are arranged in overlapl5' pingposition as indicated in Fig. 4, the upper front strips 24-28 overlapping throughout a considerable Vdistance if desired andbein adjustably oi" otherwise held by any suitab e clamping or connecting devices such as the Lyon type enclosing clips 32. The lower front strips or contact meni- -bers 25-29 may similarly overlap if desired and maybe adjustably or otherwise connected bythe clips 33 so that a double height contact face is provided on the'bufer which has a desirable appearance and may be quickly and readily manufactured with very small rcentage of waste stock. The buffer umts may in this case be similarly hardened, tempered, polished and finished: and they may be shipped in assembled condition or reerably in more or less nested closely pac (ed condition where one set of front strips may closely overlap the other to form a relatively small package. Fig. 5, the attaching and other front strips may be forced or spread apart edgewise so that, if desired, as much as several inches of vertical clearance can be secured in this way between the outer edges of the attaching strip 22 andthe buffer-front strips such as 15. '1 4 This invention' has been described in connection with a 'number of embodiments, forms, proportions, parts, arrangements,

As shown in ited, since what isclaimed as new and what I- I is desired to be securedby Letters Patent vis set forth in the appended claims:

l. Theautomobile buffer comprising two similar integral units of spring steel plate each of said units comprising a rounded rearwardly bent buffer end and a connected inwardly and rearwardly bent attaching strip and two connected relatively long vertically separated buffer front strips verticall separatedfrom said attaching strips, sai front strips being detachably connected in laterally adjusted overlap ing position to form double thickness reen orced contact portions adjacent the center of the buffer front.

2. The automobile buffer comprising two integral units of steel late, each of said 'units comprising a roun ed rearwardly bent \\bu'er end and a connected inwardly and rearwardly bent attaching strip and two "connected relatively long vertically separated bulerv front strips, said front strips being connected in overlapping. position to form double thickness reenforced contact portions adjacent the center of the buffer front.

8. 'lhe automobile buife'r comprisingtwo similar integral units of tempered spring steel plate, each of said units comprising a rounded buffer -end and a connected 1n-4V ioo lll

front-strips. said front strips being. adjustably connected in overlapping position.

5. The automobile buffer comprising two integral units of spring steel plate, each ot'v said units comprising a. reduced buier end and a connected inwardly and rearwardly bent attaching strip and two connected relatively long vertically separated vertically aligned buffer front strips, said front strips being detachably connected in overlapping position so as to be laterally adjustable.

6. e automobile buler comprising two integ l units of spring steel plate, each osaid units comprising a reduced hu'ter end and a connected inwardly and rearwardl bent attaching strip and two connected re .Itively long vertically Se front strips, said front sta-ipsv being connected in overlapping ted buier wardly 8. Th@ uummob@ buer .ormd of iemperrd spring steel phi@ @B mvirag mundadi bmer anni@ injtegraj; cmnscting two verrcay Separar/ed verrry aifmed bufer front stmps, and Maerng srips @am inward and rarward rm said buar ends and adapted tn be attacher@ the whirl@ to 3m3- port the buffer frmr srr s therefrom, sind baar from strips @mera ing inward from tha bnf-zr @ms and .being damped in imeraly :M'jused pesizion to form overapgging verically sparate rmnt srips rhrougnout the canru'ra part of ie @nager fromm 9. The aufomob@ buffer formed `of Sme?. patemd having rundr buffer ms in fegmy @meeting wm 'verticry satparamrl brxer fram #mips yaczirag mais inward and rearward from wid ber @mis and adapla to b2 gtacre ha the vehis zo suppm@ the mer from srpfz hemrmn, sain bur front Err-ips exendrw inware :from the baar @ms and baing to form overap img veriay seaparte fumi .stri s thrug ont the central par@ ai the bu er fram.

10. The automobie burer pared spring steel 'glare and having rduced Width baerends and two integraly con nected veg'icaly separted vertically aligned buffer frgm. stripes rearwardly bem adjacent said ends and inegmlly conneced attaching strips bent inward and rearward from said buer. ends and adapted to bs attached. i@ the vehicle to sup ort the buffer frfmt stri s therefrom, sai@ um rnt srries err ten ing inward fram 'the buer ends and beingromaeeed to imm overkapping vertically separated from srlps throughout he'cenim] part of le buer front.

11. The autpmobie buffer formed' of spring 'steel plate and having reduced wibh b uer ends and; rwo integrav cnnnecef vertically separat@ Vertny aligned buffer formed of rem- @mirar ALBERT mward fram tha ur @mdr to form 17erwifi/ar from i @Mandir f ra-rwarr u 

